Views vary on gay marriage laws

Pastor Jim Garlow of Skyline Church in Rancho San Diego objects to the resumption of same-sex marriages, stating “What’s at stake ... is the consent of the governed” (“Harris seeks resumption of gay marriages,” March 2). What’s really at stake is individual liberty. When we ask voters to decide on the rights of a subgroup of citizens, “consent of the governed” becomes “tyranny of the majority.”

Thomas Jefferson wrote, “The legitimate powers of government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others.” No one is injured when all couples have an equal right to the legal protections of marriage. -- Catherine Thiemann, San Diego

The former “king” of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and his “jester,” Jerry Brown, would not defend Proposition 8, the state law defining marriage as between a man and a woman. The current “king” of the U.S., President Barack Obama, and his “jester,” Attorney General Eric Holder, have declared the civil law, The Defense of Marriage Act, to be unconstitutional and will not defend it. Both the state and federal laws were created by man, as were the laws of ancient Greece and ancient Rome.

All laws of civilizations fall, and these laws will also fall. If homosexual marriages are enacted, they will also fall, for these laws are created by man. However, the law of God, that marriage is between a man and a woman, will prevail. So let homosexuals have their civil marriages and let life go on. -- Harold Cohn, Santee

For once and for all, marriage is between two people who love each other whether they are man/woman, man/man or woman/woman. It’s all about love and commitment – certainly not about having a family, otherwise seniors would never marry. -- Betty Reynolds, Coronado

After reading the quote that accompanied a picture of Pastor Jim Garlow – “This is a very serious moment. … the word ‘marriage’ has certain meaning. It’s between a man and a woman” – I realize another “serious moment” that he should now consider. If a chef uses the phrase “a marriage of flavors” in describing a new recipe, should we now take away his right to cook? -- Jim Schaefer, San Diego